Sirius Black and the locket of Slytherin (Developed from the one-shot)
by JamBerry
Summary: Sirius' finds the Slytherin locket uncovering Dumbledore's plan for Harry and discovering that Regulus gave his life for him. He reflects on their abusive childhood, his hatred of Snivellus, his role in the Order of the Phoenix during the first war, and why he didn't trust Albus and Remus with his grand plan for the Potters safety. Takes place just before the Dept. of Mysteries.
1. A Sirius Past

**Sirius Black and the locket of Slytherin**

Sirius was in the library of his family's home Grimmauld Place when he came across a locket. From his father's teaching he knew that the locket had to be a Horcrux and that he had to get rid of it as safely as he could. Sirius dreaded the thought that his mother or father could be living a half-life somewhere. Sirius went to fetch his family's book "The Dark Wizard's Guide to fame, glory and immortality". Kreacher quietly entered the library and then tried to snatch the locket off Sirius. Sirius ordered him to stop, which Kreacher promptly did and then interrogated the house elf on the origins of locket. Sirius didn't expect to hear the incredible story that his brother Regulus had attempted to destroy a Horcrux belonging to Lord Voldemort and that in the process had been killed by the Inferi guarding it. If he wasn't holding the locket he would have doubted the entire truth of it. As Kreacher told the story Sirius felt overwhelming pride at his brother's courage and wondered what had caused him to turn from the Death Eaters and Voldemort.

Sirius began to look back on his relationship with his brother. When they were very young they had supported each other through their parents' teaching in the Dark Arts, French, chess and dueling. Failure to learn was punished severely. The Cruciatus Curse and the Imperius Curse were used to maintain discipline in all things. It was through his parents teachings that Sirius understood that that the Dark Arts were a deep powerful ancient magic that in the wrong hands would be deadly. The Black boys were often pitched against each other in chess and dueling. Whilst the victor was applauded the loser would have a dueling lesson with Orion Black - a celebrated dueler. Orion Black would direct curses and hexes at which ever son had lost until they collapsed in either exhaustion or pain. Sirius couldn't endure watching Regulus being held under the Cruiciatus Curse so he often lost on purpose. This made Orion think that Sirius was pathetic, cowardly and stupid to lose to a younger brother and believed that Regulus was superior to him. Initially, Regulus had pleaded to his father not to hurt Sirius but as time went on he would watch in stony silence. It was through these lessons with his father that Sirius learned how to perform defensive spells non-verbally. From there on end, Sirius was an excellent dueler as long as he wasn't blinded by emotion – in these incidents James normally had his back. As they grew older Sirius and Regulus went their separate ways. Sirius chose to rebel against the ways of the Nobel and Most Ancient House of Black whereas Regulus chose to comply in order to be rewarded as well as avoid the punishments his brother braved so often at the wands of their mother and father.

The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black was one of the largest, oldest and wealthiest pure-blooded wizarding families in Britain. The family motto was Toujours Pur, which means "Always Pure" in French. Walburga and Orion Black lived by the family motto and expected that their sons to follow the traditions of pure-blood elitism by holding the Dark Arts in reverence and refusing to consort with Muggles, Muggle-borns, Squibs and blood traitors. Walburga Black constantly belittled and berated Sirius in front of extended family on his failure to live up to the family name whilst at the same time praised Regulus for acting in accordance with family values. Sirius thought how this motto had impacted on his relationship with his brother and how they eventually came to loath each other. Sirius couldn't stand Regulus for being a suck up and Regulus couldn't stand Sirius for being a trouble maker. The loathing had increased on the Hogwarts quidditch pitch whenever there was a match between Gryffindor and Slytherin since both boys played for their respective houses. Sirius and Regulus had landed each other in Madam Pomfrey's care a number of times. Sirius looked at his forearm. The motto Toujours Pur had been engraved there ever since he was sorted in Gryffindor and consorted with the Potter blood-traitors. Sirius had spent hours over the holidays writing the motto over and over again with a blood quill as punishment for not following the pure-blood traditions whilst at Hogwarts. It was this scar that sealed his fate of not getting a fair trial before going to Azkaban – it was almost as bad as the dark mark.

These memories slowly started to become physical forms as they became reinvigorated through the locket. In front of Sirius were Walburga and Orion Black. They were comparing him again to his brother. Sirius was the embarrassment who had got himself sorted into Gryffindor, rejected his own family's values and vandalised the family home by putting permanent-sticking charms on pictures of Muggle girls in bikinis and motorcycles. Whereas Regulus was the good son, a Slytherin and who was gifted at the Dark Arts. Sirius would have been drawn into the memories if they still troubled him but they no longer did - it was the loss of James and Lily that haunted him. The memories started to morph into James and Lily but the confusion from the Horcrux on how to control Sirius at that moment gave him enough time to leave the library and put distance between himself and the Horcrux.

Sirius hated his imprisonment at Grimmuald Place. He thought he was free of it a long time ago. Before it was just his parents, now Snivellus and Voldemort had made their way into his home. Sirius thought that out of the two, he hated Snivellus the most – a deceitful greasy fiend that swept his way in and out of Sirius' home expecting everyone to show gratitude for him risking his life. The truth was they were all risking their lives just by being a member of the Order of the Phoenix and he had seen many a friend die in the first war. Sirius, of course, didn't feel nearly as useful to the Order as he once was but he would be there for whatever and whenever he was needed. Sirius thought that whilst Voldemort was an outright cruel charlatan – you knew where you stood with him - which was normally under one the unforgivable curses that Sirius knew so well. Sirius had known Voldemort's half-blood heritage from a portrait of Professor Phineas Nigellus Black who was once a Headmaster at Hogwarts and therefore could listen into privilege information. Sirius snorted in laughter- They all daddy issues! – then poured himself a large glass of firewhisky.

It was at Hogwarts that Sirius had made his mind up about Snivellus. At Hogwarts Sirius was enormously popular: teachers valued his intelligence whilst being secretly amused by his behaviour and the girls admired his dark handsome looks and bad boy attitude. However, Sirius had his enemies, mostly the entire Slytherin house who thought he was fair game given that he had turned his back on their way of life. However, his most noteworthy adversary was Snivellus. Snivellus had earned the name because he would snivel up to the likes of Malfoy and McNair. Sirius' animosity towards Snivellus ran deeper than that of James who was jealous over Snape's friendship with the spirited and adorable Lily Evans. It started on the Hogwarts Express when Snivellus said he wanted to be sorted into Slytherin house and sneered at James' hope of ending up in Gryffindor like his father. The animosity increased as Sirius realised the extent of Snivellus' interest in the Dark Arts and his willingness to misuse them. At the age of eleven, Sirius knew that Snivellus had more curses and hexes up his sleeve than most of the seventh year students because Sirius had defended himself (and his friends) against them as he had done on many occasions when dueling with his father. When Regulus arrived the next year Sirius knew that Snivellus had sniveled up to Regulus to gain the knowledge of the Dark Arts that his parents had forced upon them. Whilst Sirius was at Hogwarts he often wondered how Snivellus would fare directly under his father's method of teaching. He of course now knew from Lily that Snivellus had an unhappy childhood himself. Sirius remembered how Lily would try to justify Snivellus' choice of following Voldemort through explaining that Snivellus was often bullied by his father. Sirius recalled how he had snapped at her that Snivellus' past was no excuse by showing her his Toujours Pur scar. In his eyes everyone had a choice even it meant dying for the good fight. It was the only argument they had where James and Remus didn't try to stand up for Lily.

Regulus and Sirius barely spoke to each other at Hogwarts preferring to stick to their own houses as they had little in common. Regulus never joined in with the Slytherins daily taunting of Sirius for being a blood traitor but didn't defend him either. This Sirius could easily stand but it was through Regulus' friendship with Snivellus that Snivellus knew how to get under Sirius' thick skin. When Snivellus wasn't playing with his chemistry set, he followed the Marauders around, looking for reasons to get them expelled. Once he got Sirius into trouble, Snivellus would constantly remind Sirius about the number of Cruciatus Curses he would receive over the holidays for his misdeeds. At first James had thought that it was too ridiculous to be true that his best friend would be punished in this way but then quickly realised through Sirius' reaction that the threat of the Cruciatus Curse was very real and he felt powerless to protect him. It was then that James started to use the hexes Snivellus himself had made up against him. Overtime, Snivellus noticed there was something strange about Remus and soon enough worked out that Remus was a werewolf. The truth of the matter was that most students with an ounce of common sense had worked this out since Remus' absences coincided with the full moon. For the most part, these students were fond of Remus who they had gotten to know over the years and subtly supported him. However, there were others who were malicious and wanted to prove that Remus was dangerous so that he could be expelled. Snivellus was firmly in this camp. Sirius thought back on how Snivellus had gotten Remus kicked out of Hogwarts as teacher – nothing had changed there. Snivellus had cornered Sirius after he had received a howler from his mother Walburga Black which were full of promises of the punishments he would receive when he returned home for the holidays. Sirius was vulnerable when Snivellus asked him if Sirius' mother would put down half-breeds that associated with her son and then hang up their heads alongside the heads of dead house elves in Grimmauld Place. Sirius fully understood the direct threat to Remus' well-being from Walburga and Orion Black if Snivellus told them about his friend's lycanthropy. Sirius wanted to warn Snivellus off so snapped at Snivellus that he should be brave enough to do his own dirty work of getting rid of Remus and if he poked the knot at the bottom of the Whomping Willow he may be able to see how well he fared against Remus on that particularly day of the month. Sirius never thought the idiot would actually do it. It was lucky that James saw Snivellus approaching the Shrieking Shack on the marauder's map and guessed that Snivellus had somehow found out where Remus was. James of course went after Snivellus at great risk to his own life and pulled him back to save Snivellus from certain death at the claws of a werewolf. Following the incident, James and Remus stopped talking to Sirius for a while and whilst James was out of Sirius' wayward influence, James got closer to Lily through her friendship with Remus. Lily, Remus and James would study together and visit Hogsmeade whilst Sirius spent time with the rest of the Gryffindor quidditch team and Peter. Sirius missed his best friends and it wasn't until Andromeda told James why Sirius had lost his temper that James and Remus forgave him. Andromeda knew she had to do something when she overheard Snivellus joke about how he split the lovely couple up and she had noticed how Sirius was slowly going off the rails without James to temper him.

Sirius recalled how at the age of sixteen he had been told by his father that he agreed with Voldemort ideals and that his boys would join the Death Eaters on becoming of age. Sirius opposed his father and barely escaped Grimmauld Place with his life. Sirius ran to the only place that might offer him protection – the Potter's house. He had turned up battered and bloody. James' parents patched him up, gave him refuge and adopted Sirius as a son. Voldemort saw Sirius' defiance in joining his ranks as Sirius rebelling against his father and not his authority so he gave Sirius a reprieve on an understanding that he would join his ranks later on. Sirius would always be grateful to his uncle Alphard for leaving him financially independent. Alphard had always liked how his young nephew's spirit couldn't be broken by his sister Walburga's rants and rages, so in order to get one last laugh at Walburga he left Sirius a large inheritance in his will.

After Hogwarts the marauders were all thrown into the harsher realities of life. Remus was unemployable due to his status as a werewolf. James' parents died and it was a devastating lost to James but also to Sirius as he was closer to them than his own parents. James found comfort in Lily who understood what he was going through as she had also lost her parents. Soon James and Lily married with Sirius as best man. Whilst Sirius had dates he didn't have relationships - he knew that there was so much to lose with the war - he was fond of Marlene McKinnon. The Potters had been wealthy and James inherited a large fortune and so was able to comfortably support his family and Remus without the need for a paying job. Sirius remembered how Vernon had tried to impress James with his car and a row followed as James boasted of his own substantial wealth. Sirius wondered if that was why Petunia and Vernon gave Harry only the bare essentials – to put Harry, James' son, in his place. Sirius made a mental note to tell Harry of his inheritance. Sirius knew that Harry was unhappy at the Dursley's - that he didn't have one happy memory for the Patronus Charm to work - and this increased Sirius' guilt over James' and Lily deaths a hundred times over. Sirius loved Harry like his own son but he couldn't step into James' shoes and be a father to him - he wasn't father material especially after Azkaban.

The marauders joined the Order of the Phoenix in the fight against Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters. Lily was excellent in charms and so protected safe houses. James was a planner and talented in transfiguration and so could organise counter attacks and ambushes on the Death Eaters. Remus' responsibility was to persuade so called Dark Creatures against joining Voldemort's forces and gather intelligence from them on Voldemort's movements. Sirius' role was to gather intelligence and drop false information by socialising with the rich sons and daughters of the pure-blood families in the chicest wizarding bars in London. They knew that Sirius had rebelled against his parents but he was still a rich pure-blood playboy and so was accepted. He would also drop false information. This had stood against him after Peter framed him for his crimes. Sirius was also well versed in the darkest of Dark Arts and taught certain members of the Order of the Phoenix so that they could be prepared for what they may face from the Death Eaters. During this time James and Lily had defied Voldemort three times. The first was when they refused to join Voldemort's side when he attempted to recruit them, the second was when they escaped the Death Eaters who were sent to destroy the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix which Voldemort was certain they belonged to and the third was when they held back Death Eaters who were attacking muggles and refused to stand aside. They were dangerous times but adventurous too. Sirius remembered how he and James were involved in a motorbike chase with two Muggle policemen and were attacked by three men on broomsticks. Sirius and James had used their wands to raise the police car that had been chasing them, and their attackers crashed into it.

Sirius went to Regulus' room to understand why his brother had defied Voldemort. Sirius knew that Regulus kept a diary and found it in the loose slats underneath the floor boards. Sirius looked around the room and saw photos and articles of Lord Voldemort and his followers that hung near a painting of his family crest. Sirius always knew that Regulus would join the Death Eaters. Regulus admired Lord Voldemort and wanted to meet his father's ambition for him to become a Death Eater. When Sirius had found out that Regulus was missing he was troubled but assumed that the Death Eaters had killed his little brother for either disobeying an order or failing on a mission. Sirius put more effort into his work for the Order of Phoenix to revenge Regulus by taking on the most riskiest operations – he had less to lose than the other members and his own life didn't mean much to him compared to that of his friends. James would try to talk him out of them but he would always go. Sirius recollected how Orion Black had tried to reach out to Sirius during this time and afterwards in Azkaban but Sirius refused to return his owls or accept his visits as he blamed his parents and their purist ideology for Regulus' death. Orion Black had put extra protection on the house and reinstated Sirius as the heir to ensure Voldemort didn't get his hands on the Black family assets. Orion Black had tried to get his son released from Azkaban but Sirius had refused his help and Orion had little influence left as most of his connections were associated with Voldemort. One day whilst Sirius was serving time in Azkaban his parents died peacefully in their sleep - though Sirius couldn't imagine his mother do anything peacefully.

Through reading Regulus' diary Sirius realised that his brother had died for him. Regulus found out his brother Sirius had been marked for death. Sirius had become a threat to Voldemort. Voldemort had noted how Sirius had bravely fought for the Order of the Phoenix and had killed many in his ranks. Voldemort knew that Sirius' knowledge of the Dark Arts could only be matched by that of a few of his elite Death Eaters and it was through this knowledge that the Order of the Pheonix was able to defend themselves against the most deadly of attacks. Regulus had to save his brother who he loved deep down and who had shielded him from the worst of his parents rages when growing up. It was Voldemort who gave Regulus the opportunity to protect his brother by misusing his house elf to hide a Horcrux - Regulus understood full well what a Horcrux was. Regulus knew that Sirius' gruelling dueling lessons with his father had made him a formidable opponent and if anyone had a chance of slaying the Dark Lord he did. Regulus wanted Voldemort mortal when Sirius fought him. Sirius placed his head in his hands knowing that Regulus' faith in him had been misplaced.

After the prophecy was made regarding his godson and Lord Voldemort, James, Harry and Lily went into hiding. Sirius remembered how devastated he was by the news that Voldemort had marked his family for death and knew he would have done everything in his power to ensure their safety including give his own life. He had loss Regulus and wasn't about to lose his other brother. Sirius thought their best chance was a double-bluff and convinced James to select Peter as their Secret-Keeper and he would be their decoy. Sirius wanted to keep the bluff a secret between himself, Lily, James and Peter and so the Fidelius Charm was cast in private. Less than a week later, Peter betrayed Lily and James to Voldemort. Sirius now knew that Peter was loyal only to himself and acted in whatever his best interest was in that instant. Looking back he still couldn't tell when Peter had begun working as a double agent for Voldemort, having come to the belief that nothing could be gained from opposing him. It was only through Sirius' grief that Peter was able to escape him after Voldemort's downfall and frame him for his crimes. Sirius couldn't wait to find Peter in his animagus form and serve him to Buckbeak for breakfast.

Albus and Remus were kept in the dark about the switch because Sirius didn't trust them and James and Lily had put their faith in him. Sirius had regretted his distrust of Remus ever since that fateful day. Sirius didn't trust Remus because the Ministry of Magic, under Umbridge, had brought in all sort of rules and regulations for dark creatures. It was going to be a matter of time before all dark creatures would be rounded up and placed in camps - werewolves already had to wear a moon symbol or be harshly punished. For Sirius, it was understandable for Remus and wizards like him to join forces with Lord Voldemort so that they could retain their freedom. But Sirius should have known that Remus would see past Voldemort's false promises and would never join his ranks.

Sirius had been one of the few members in the Order of the Phoenix that didn't entirely trust Albus Dumbledore because he was also one of the few members that knew of his past. Sirius would often go for a drink in Aberforth's pub to relax after a night of socialising with the children of the richest pure-blood families. Through Aberforth Sirius had learnt that there was a time when Albus became fascinated by Grindelwald's ideas of wizarding domination and that Ariana, Albus' sister, had been killed in a violent duel between Aberforth, Albus and Grindelwald. Sirius wasn't sure if Dumbledore would give up the Potters whereabouts for the greater good if the time called for it. Albus was a strategist, a man of secrets, who never forgot about the big picture. When it came to Harry, Sirius still didn't know if Dumbledore had Harry's best interest at heart. Sirius was sure Dumbledore was trying to toughen up Harry and keep him alive long enough so that Harry could fulfil the prophecy. But Sirius didn't trust his own judgement anymore and Remus would never see fault in a man who had given him an education and the opportunity of life-long friends. Sirius would happily watch Snivellus snivel up glory as long as he could ensure that he would be there for Harry whenever he needed him - this is why he let Grimmauld Place be used as the Head Quarters for the Order of the Phoenix.

It was Regulus' disappearance that made Remus believe that Sirius had betrayed the Potters. Remus thought that Sirius had betrayed the whereabouts of James, Harry and Lily to Voldemort and had given over other information in return for his brother's life. Remus knew that Sirius' hate for purist ideology was genuine and that James, Lily and Harry meant a lot to Sirius but thought that Sirius was playing the dangerous game of luring Voldemort to the Potter's safe house in order to launch a solo surprise attack and take Voldemort down - hence be hailed a hero. Remus thought that Sirius in panic of his grand plan going wrong and of being caught had killed Peter with a force so accidentally strong that 12 muggles had died in the explosion. Sirius could understand it - he was always taking risky chances back then but only with his own life. Remus thought that the Potters, his family, had paid for Sirius' stupidity with their lives, that Peter's murder along with the 12 muggles was unforgivable and therefore Sirius deserved to rot in Azkaban. After James and Lily died, Remus' life had been destroyed because not only was he no longer financially supported which meant very little to him but he also couldn't visit children without supervision and guardian agreement so he couldn't see Harry until he was of age. This devastated Remus. Remus had no-one and he lived a monotonous existence until Dumbledore had given Remus the Defense against the Dark Arts job. Remus readily took the job despite knowing of the curse n put on it by Voldemort because it was his chance to see Harry. Remus had been right about Sirius – Sirius was capable of an implementing a foolish plan that would lead to the destruction of all that he held dear and one day Sirius hoped he would be able to make it up to Remus – he just had no idea how to start.


	2. A Sirius Dawning

Sirius finished reading Regulus' diary and the part of the "Dark Wizard's Guide to fame, glory and immortality" covering Horcruxes. Horcruxes could be destroyed by Fiendfyre but he would need help controlling the fire. Both Sirius and Regulus were sure that if Voldemort had one Horcrux he had others. The book said that "Creating one Horcrux gives one the ability to anchor one's own soul to earth if the body is destroyed; the more horcruxes one creates, the closer one is to true immortality". Sirius started to pace the room wondering how he could even being searching for horcruxes.

Regulus' diary had contained many ideas and commentaries that he expected to read such as how muggles were like parasites that had driven wizards into hiding and that Voldemort was going to re-establish the natural order. However, Sirius didn't expect to read how much Regulus had admired him. Apparently Voldemort had taken a leaf out of his father's book on punishment when disciplining Death Eaters and it had caused Regulus to look back on how Sirius had stood up for himself and went his own way despite it all even though he was just a child. There were other interesting observations about Voldemort in the diary such as Regulus knew that the reason why Voldemort had cursed the Defence against the Dark Arts position at Hogwarts was so that a generation of students wouldn't have the knowledge to fight against him.

Regulus had written about Voldemort's obsession with the founders of Hogwarts and their ancient magic. Regulus thought that one of the Horcruxes was the Diadem of Ravenclaw. Voldemort had boasted how he had found a long lost artefact during his travels and had hidden the object right under Dumbledore's nose. It had to be at Hogwarts. It had confused Regulus at the time why the artefact had to be hidden.

The most surprising of information that came out of Regulus' diary was that Orion Black had turned against Voldemort. Somehow, Orion worked out that Voldemort was not a pure-blood but the half-blood Tom Riddle who was not averse to harming a pure-blood's family. Reading this, Sirius knew he had to do something particularly unpleasant. He would have to speak to the last remaining portrait of his father. Sirius slowly went into the attic, took a deep breath and stood in front of the portrait

"What do you have to say for yourself old man?"

"I wondered how long it would take you to figure it out. You've grown slow-witted in Azkaban. Was being stretched on the rack, having your skin melted and having your bones crushed not to your liking? I had to pay them off in the end."

"I didn't ask for your help."

"I know. You would rather die a martyr. A martyr to the side that had abandoned you. But yet you would turn to me for your godson. How interesting that you weren't so bothered by your brother's death. How much you despised him in the end for being soft? You should've let me toughen him up"

"I despised him for being like you."

"You are more like me then you think Sirius - teaching half-bloods, muggle-borns and blood-traitors the Dark Arts. Who would have thought it?"

"They had to know what they were up against."

"There's many ancient artefacts around here to use against Voldemort if you haven't already thrown them out and you're strong enough to use them."

"I'll pass, thank you."

"So you still won't embrace your heritage."

"Never. What I don't understand is why you were you turned against Voldemort."

"He was an impostor. I wondered why someone who never went to Hogwarts was so interested in the place and where did the name Voldemort come from. I was doing the crossword when it came to me that Lord Voldemort could be an anagram of Tom Marvolo Riddle. A half-blood wanting power over all wizards including pure-bloods . I knew of Riddle of course. He was prefect whilst I was at Hogwarts. He would wear a signet ring of the House of Gaunt to prove his was a descendent from Slytherin. But all pure-bloods knew how far the House of Gaunt had fallen. The ring disappeared off Riddle's finger and given his obsession of artefacts I don't believe he simply lost it. Voldemort isn't too different from Dumbledore is he – both want to groom children for their bidding."

"Dumbledore isn't like that."

"Really, Sirius, I thought you had finally seen through him. Why is Dumbledore still the Head Master when he could be so much more – the Minister of Magic for instance. But then again like Voldemort he wouldn't need to do the job himself – a puppet would do – Fudge for intance. Doesn't seem to be towing the line now does he? You know Sirius I should have spent less time toughening you up and more time on politics. You would have been some wizard."

"I am who I am. So when you discovered that Voldemort was an imposter what did you do? I can't imagine you and your pure-blood chums taking that lying down."

"We didn't but we trusted the wrong person. Malfoy's son proved unworthy. Voldemort knew we were planning a resistance within and that I was a leader. Then both of my sons were marked dead – not just the one who turned his back on his father and was getting up Voldemort's nose. Voldemort would have been amused if you killed Regulus. I tried to contact you to try and tackle him together but you were still a stubborn little boy

"Well if you have nothing else to tell me ..."

"Only this - that we are related to the Gaunt family."

"We're related to everybody."

"It means that there was portrait connected to this house observing how a horcrux came to be made

"You've got my attention. I'm listening."

"Well, what are you going to give me in return?"

"You're dead. What can I offer a dead wizard"

"But the name and the legacy of Black is alive. I want you to stop destroying this house and to live."

"Deal. But how the line lives is up to me."

Orion conceded and Sirius listened to how a second horcrux came about.

After conversing with Orion's portrait, Sirius knew he had to get out of the house and risk being caught if he was to think straight about Voldemort's Horcruxes. Sirius was already a wreck of a man but every day he spent in the house he was turning more ill-tempered and depressed. Living off rats and in a cave was better than being in Grimmauld Place. Sirius transformed into Padfoot and went for a run around the block.

* * *

Sirius had reasons to be ill-tempered. Firstly, he knew that the Order of the Phoenix was being too defensive. Secondly, he was sure that Harry had been abused at the Dursley's. Thirdly, Snivellus' had stopped teaching Harry Occlumency.

Sirius felt that the Order of the Phoenix should be on the offensive rather than the defensive. But the Order was different now with many of the bold and daring members having died in the previous war. Sirius believed that the Order of the Phoenix was waiting for Voldemort to do an open move and disagreed with the stance. Voldemort was up to his old tricks of creating suspicion, confusion and fear. They had to act. Voldemort had just freed his Death Eaters out of Azkaban and Sirius knew it was a matter of time before Voldemort had control of the Ministry of Magic – if he hadn't already. Then they would be in trouble. Sirius laughed as he recalled how the Prophet reported that Bellatrix and her cronies had returned to him – when they were children he would've hexed his cousin to death if his mother hadn't threatened to break his wand in two. It was the only time his father had been proud of him. During Azkaban Bellatrix had talked in her sleep. From her ramblings Sirius was sure that Voldemort had trusted her with a secret mission. Bellatrix was certain that her Dark Lord would rise again and was proud that she and her husband, Rodolphus Lestrange, had looked for him by torturing the Longbottoms to insanity. Her comfort in Azkaban was that she would rewarded for her loyalty. Sirius knew that Bellatrix and her husband must have used a combination of the Cruciatus Curse and Legilimency to have caused the permanent damage that the Longbottoms suffered. Sirius started to think - What if Bella was sure that Voldemort would rise again because she knew what a Horcrux was? What would the horcrux be? – another ancient artefact belonging to the Hogwarts founders? And if she was entrusted with a Horcrux where would she hide it? Gringotts was the most obvious choice – a little too obvious – but the Lestrange's house had already been raided by Aurors. The Order had to at least check.

Sirius was angry that he and Harry had a lot in common since both had unhappy childhoods and both now had their free will confined. Of course Sirius knew about the blood wards but Sirius also knew what it was like to be mistreated. Sirius had joked about it with Harry but he thought it was so unfair on Harry since he had Lily and James as parents – the best parents a child could ask for. Harry's only memory of his parents' voices was that of desperation and it was the dementors that had dragged up that deep forgotten memory. Sirius remembered when he first saw his godson after Azkaban. Harry was running away to free himself of the brutality of the Dursleys. Sirius wondered how the blood wards still held - he would have to get Bill Weasley to check. Acting like a chum to his godson's friends had the advantages that they were more open with him then the other adults at Grimmauld Place. From what he gathered Harry had lived in a cupboard under the stairs until he came to Hogwarts, was moved into a second bedroom where he was locked in and then almost kicked out of the house when dementors had attacked him and his cousin. If that wasn't bad enough Harry had been given meagre portions of food, did most of the chores, never celebrated his birthday, provided only with hand-me-downs, was bullied by his cousin and roughly handled by his uncle - even his aunt wasn't above aiming frying pans at his head. Sirius regretted handing over Harry to Hagrid on that fateful night. He should have taken the half-giant on. Sirius knew he would have to wait his time to have one round of muggle duelling with Vernon Dursley. He was sure to have Remus right beside him.

Sirius was furious that Snivellus' had stopped giving Harry Occlumency lessons when Harry had a peek of Snivellus' memory. Given everything Snivellus had done as a Death Eater it had surprised Sirius that two boys singling him out would be his worst memory. Sirius thought that that summed up Snivellus' attitude to all that erked him – he would risk Sirius' soul, Remus' livelihood and Harry's life for a schoolboy grudge. Snivellus knew of the mind connection between Voldemort and Harry. Sirius wondered if Dumbledore had chosen Snivellus at Harry's teacher to pry not only on Harry's mind but Voldemort's. Of course it was always going to be a disaster. To learn Occlumency you needed to trust your teacher to see your most secret memories and advise you on the best defenses but Harry did not trust Snivellus. When Harry asked about the memory of James randomly attacking Snivellus, Sirius couldn't expose Harry to his troubled childhood as he didn't want that in Harry's head without time to fully explain it all and he didn't want to tell Harry a half-truth. Sirius did feel to blame for Snivellus bullying Harry from day one of Hogwarts - he knew it was because his best friend James would start clashes of wands with Snivellus so that he couldn't take use Sirius abusive relationship his parents against him. Sirius knew now that they were idiots for not paying attention to Remus who tried to tell them they had gone too far and didn't know when to stop - Remus used to always say what comes around goes around. But he still couldn't stand how Snivellus would attack his dead best friend. Sirius respected Harry for getting in between his scuffle with Snivellus. Harry was already a better man than he was. James was far from perfect but he was a good friend and a good man. Sirius hoped that Harry would be proud of his father but become his own man by not living under a false shadow of him. If it wasn't for Umbridge Sirius would have flooed to Hogwarts and teachHarry himself. His mother had been a skilled Legilimens and was always trying to pry into his mind so that she could punish him for his misconduct against the Black family code. To protect himself and Remus, Sirius had no choice but to learn Occlumency, which he did through his Uncle Alphard, and his shields were powerful.

Sirius was worried about why Harry hadn't contacted him via the mirror but through the riskier option of the floo network. Sirius knew that Molly wouldn't approve of him giving the mirror to Harry so gave it to him covertly because if Harry needed him he wanted to be contactable. That had been a mistake. Sirius was fed up of Molly questioning his relationship with Harry. Sirius couldn't blame Molly and Arthur for not a taking a liking to him. When he broke out of Azkaban in search of Peter he had acted recklessly and stood over their son's bed with a knife in his hands. He had to confess to Remus he wouldn't have been too pleased if it had been Harry in the bed. But Molly was wrong when she said Sirius thought he got back James. He got back Harry. He knew that and would be forever grateful - he loved his boy. It was just that Harry had been a baby before Azkaban and when he had escaped Harry was closer to the age of when he first encountered Voldemort. He missed so much in the middle and didn't know how to deal with that. Sirius believed that Remus made a better godfather than he did as he naturally had a fatherly authority that could guide Harry on to the right path. All he could be was a friend to Harry. Sirius had seen Remus watching him closely ready to intervene if the need called for. Molly's tongue could be like his mother's and it had riled him. Remus knew his speed with a wand and the power of his magic. Remus and Sirius were closely matched. If Remus was nearing full moon his heightened werewolf senses gave him an unnerving edge over Sirius' upbringing. Remus had Sirius' back. Remus had stopped him from doing critical damage to Dung after he abandoned his post of watching Harry. When Dung was grateful to Remus for stopping the madman Sirius Black, Remus gave Dung a satisfying punch in the gut and Sirius followed him through with a punch in the face. The marauders rose again!

Sirius boggart was a dead Harry. He wanted Harry to be in the Order so that he could be prepared and on his guard. From all accounts Harry liked to solve a puzzle and Voldemort could use that to his advantage. It was dangerous not giving Harry information that he would eventually seek out without anyone to guide him. Sirius didn't want to own up to it but he knew Harry was ready to join the fight. He knew Harry was no longer a boy but a man. His godson had defied Voldemort more times than most wizards and had lived to tell the tale. During the Triwizard Cup, Sirius thought he had done everything to be there for Harry knowing that whoever wanted to hurt Harry had every opportunity - but it hadn't been enough. Harry had been tortured, forced to restore Voldemort to his body and witnessed a friend die. The only joy throughout that time was taking a sneak peek of Harry in his dress robes as Padfoot – he was proud of how his godson had grown up. What had been troubling Sirius since Harry's near death experience in the graveyard was the gleam of triumph in Dumbledore's eyes. It had pained Sirius to leave Harry after this experience and round up the remaining members of the Order of the Phoenix. Sirius knew then he shouldn't have left Harry as his boy needed someone to help him deal with the grief and guilt. Again, Sirius had neglected Harry on Dumbledore's order.

This year Harry had to contend with Umbridge. His godson never got a break. Sirius wanted to visit Harry, cheer him up and let him have fun. He wanted Harry to be a teenager. He knew James would've wanted this for Harry despite the risk but it came out wrong "You're less like your father than I thought … the risk would've made it fun for James." Sure, he was disappointed that Harry didn't want to see him but he knew that Harry wanted to be like his father who he esteemed and this would have saddened Harry. Sirius knew that being around the the locket day in day out was affecting him. If Remus knew what he said to Harry he would've waited for full moon to seek his revenge. Sirius was proud that Harry was leading the illegal Defence Against the Dark Arts Group (wanting his friends to learn how to defend themselves against Voldemort and his Death Eaters) but he wished Harry was more focused on building up the courage to invite Ginny Weasley out on a date rather than on fighting Voldemort. That was an adult's fight but Harry was older than his years. Sirius was glad that Harry had the Marauders' map, the Potter's Invisibility Cloak, his knife and the firebolt - the tools of a Maruader's trade. If he could bet galleons on who gave Harry the Marauders' map it would have been the Weasley twins – only they could have been in Filch's office often enough and with enough prankster sense to know the prize they landed. Sirius hadn't wanted Harry to get expelled after the dementor attack. If James and Lily was alive he would have told Harry the tricks of the Maruader's trade. But Sirius felt Harry wasn't safe at Hogwarts. During Harry's first year he saved the Philosophers stone from Voldemort and was unconscious for 3 days. Sirius was sure Dumbledore was allowing Harry to test himself against a weakened Voldemort. What the hell was Dumbledore playing at? Most adult wizards wouldn't take that challenge on and he had let three kids stumble through it. The next year was worst. Harry had slayed a basilisk and destroyed Tom Riddle who appeared from a diary that had possessed Ginny Weasley. Sirius was sure the diary behaved like a Horcrux and Harry had destroyed it using a baslisk fang. When Remus first told him the story he had hoped the story had been exaggerated but knowing Harry it was likely to be a lot worse as Harry had a habit of downplaying everything. Out of all of Harry's years at Hogwarts the safest was when Harry thought he was after him. That year Harry had saved him from a fate worse than death and came face-to-face with a werewolf.

Christmas had been the first time Sirius had enjoyed and relaxed in a long time. He had felt useful again by trying to create some Christmas cheer. It started gravely with Arthur being attacked. At first Sirius hadn't done a good job with dealing with the direct aftermath. It wasn't the first time he felt like he was intruding on family grief - the first time was when James' parents died – he couldn't find the right things to say. It upset him to see Harry go through this experience and believe he was to blame for the attack. It troubled Sirius to hear that Harry believed he was the snake. Sirius had read how living creatures that were made into Horcruxes had soul connections and took on qualities of their owners. Dumbledore had once said that the snake and Voldemort seemed to act like one. Harry was a Parseltongue and he knew enough about the Potter history through living with them that none of the Potter line was a Parseltongue. Why was Dumbledore avoiding Harry since Harry's encounter in the graveyard with Voldemort? Why was Dumbledore scared of Harry? It dawned on Sirius that Harry was a horcrux of Voldemort. Padfoot howled long and loud in agony. Something happened that fateful night for Harry to be a horcrux. Sirius was frightened. How could he get rid of Voldemort's soul inside Harry? Did Harry have to be destroyed in order for Voldemort to die? The prophecy was making more and more sense.

_"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches...born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives..."_

Dumbledore needed Harry to die. But Sirius wasn't going to allow that to happen. Sirius would destroy all the other Horcruxes, kill Voldemort and lock his half-dead body in the deepest and darkest of pits that he would watch till the end of his days so that Harry could live a long life. Sirius needed help – Moody could be counted on to help him, Remus and Tonks were family and he had to take a chance with Kingsley who he had judged as a decent man. Sirius as Padfoot sprinted to Grimmauld place and contacted each one.

* * *

Sirius had gathered Moody, Remus, Tonks and Kingsley to tell them what he discovered and what his conclusions were. They would probably think he had gone crazy in Azkaban but he had to try. Dumbledore did not have Harry's best interest at heart – Dumbledore wanted Harry to die at the right time and at the hand of Voldemort. At that moment they received a message from Snivellus. Umbridge had attempted to interrogate Harry with Veritaserum and Harry believed that Voldemort had caught Sirius. They then heard there was a commotion at the Department of Mysteries which the Order had been watching. Sirius and Remus looked at each other knowing full well their boy was in danger.

* * *

Sirius, Remus, Moody, Tonks and Kingsley flew to the Department of Mysteries. They saw Harry and his friends fight the Death Eaters. Sirius was proud at Harry's skill of dueling – his reflexes on the quidditch definitely showing - but Sirius was scared for him. Sirius got stuck in wanting to protect his boy. Sirius rammed Dolohov and started to duel him telling Harry to take Neville and run. Sirius then duelled Bellatrix. He had beaten Bellatrix many times before when they were children and taunted her to distract her from Harry and Neville. Sirius saw Dumbledore out of his the corner of his eye and then saw Bella ready to strike. Sirius would've have fired first if he wasn't suddenly frozen. He knew it was Dumbledore. Dumbledore wanted him dead so that his secret couldn't be revealed allowing Harry to fulfill the prophecy. Sirius guessed that the portrait of Professor Phineas Nigellus Black had told Dumbledore what he discovered without realising what Dumbledore would do. Bellatrix's curse was about to struck when he performed legilimency on Remus "Don't trust him. Protect our boy." Remus nodded. Sirius then died.

* * *

On the other side of the veil, Sirius was offered a choice to be a ghost as he had unfinished business and he was about to take the opportunity to save Harry when James came running forward from the light "Enough. Mate, you've done your bit. Harry wouldn't want you like that forever. It's up to him now. It's time to join me" Sirius then felt relaxed, younger than what he did in years, and followed James.


	3. Remus' story

Following the Battle of the Department of Mysteries Remus had been set to work as usual by gathering intelligence from the werewolves. It was work that he hated but felt was necessary if Dumbledore saw it that way. Remus' Boggart was a full moon, reflecting his terror of transforming into his werewolf form. The last thing he wanted to do was consort with those who embraced their affliction. In the end, even James and Sirius had doubted him because of his lycanthropy. It wasn't a werewolf prejudice that made Sirius believe he could join forces with Voldemort but his belief that Remus was human. Remus would want to fight the prosecution of werewolves by the Ministry of Magic. Times were tough then. Lily had kept in touch saying that his best friends would see sense with enough time and that Sirius had a serious lack of trust in anybody – including Dumbledore. Remus could never betray his friends not even to tell Dumbledore that James, Peter and Sirius were Animagi when it was likely that Sirius was using his dog form in some way. Remus thought he was a coward for not doing so but it was Remus' way to see himself in the worse possible way.

The events in the Battle of Department of Mysteries were troubling Remus. Sirius had projected his last thought into his mind "Don't trust him. Protect our boy." What did that mean? Who did Sirius not trust? At the time Remus thought Sirius was referring to Snape but now he wasn't so sure. Remus knew that Sirius thought he was on to something when he had called him, Tonks, Moody and Kingsley to a meeting at the headquarters. Sirius was exceptionally bright so they would've listened but Sirius did occasionally get it wrong so he assumed they were there as his sounding board. Remus would never know what Sirius had found out. The diary, locket and book that was on the table before they went to the Department of Mysteries had gone by the time they returned.

Remus hadn't liked the way Dumbledore blamed Sirius for his own death through being rash and his treatment of Kreacher. They all would have died for Harry because Harry was their boy. Kreacher would have lied to Harry about Sirius' whereabouts regardless of Sirius' treatment of him because Sirius had turned his back on the Black's family traditions and values. In Sirius' mothers eyes and therefore of Kreacher Sirius was no longer a Black. In Remus' eyes this made Sirius a respectable wizard. Sirius knew that you tell a wizard from how they treated inferiors not their equals and therefore Sirius was thoughtful to everyone except Death Eaters and Kreacher. Kreacher had been instrumental in Sirius' abuse by Walburga Black during the school holidays. The punishments Kreacher was ordered to do to Sirius included locking him in chains, whipping him, and for the worst transgressions slashing Sirius with a knife. Remus' remembered seeing the scars on Sirius. James had made Sirius show him when Sirius snapped at Snape his hiding place as a werewolf during full moon at Hogwarts. Up until that point Remus' had no real idea how Sirius' home life was like. Sure he knew Sirius hated his family, their values and traditions but he had no idea the price Sirius was paying to live his life the way he felt it ought to be lived. Remus knew it was cruel of Snape to have taunted Sirius over his family – the ones who were meant to love and yet had hurt him the most. Snape should've been able to empathise with the situation rather than take advantage of it. No wonder James would strike before Snape had the chance of opening his mouth. Scourgify was James' favourite spell to use on Snape. Obviuosly it all went too far and whilst both James and Sirius had seen their fault Snape never did. Nevertheless, like anyone who did Remus a good deed, Remus had been grateful to Snape for brewing his potion whilst he was a teacher at Hogwarts.

The way Sirius had died was particularly disturbing Remus. During Sirius' arrest hit wizards from the magical enforcement squad were needed to take Sirius. Sirius reputation for dueling had on been on par with Orion Black. Remus had seen Sirius duel many times before in the last war and the reputation was not unfounded. His reaction timings were like lighting so Remus didn't understand why didn't he fire a curse at Bellatrix? What was even stranger was the way Sirius had been suspended before falling into the veil.

Aurors had been given permission to kill during the last war. When Peter framed Sirius, it was lucky Moody was there otherwise Sirius would've been executed on the spot. When Sirius was captured he was tortured repeatedly over time for information about Voldemort but then suddenty forgotten about. Remus and Tonks had seen his new scars one night whilst Sirius was sleeping semi-naked, hugging a bottle of firewhisky and tossing and turning from a nightmare. Remus and Tonks were shocked at the brutal way Sirius had been treated in Azkaban. When Sirius woke up they asked him about the torture but Sirius believed he deserved it all for what happened to James, Harry and Lily. Remus imagined that if James was there to hear that he would have punched Sirius to knock some sense into him. Remus had been tempted to. Remus saw Sirius slowly falling apart in Grimmauld Place and knew that Sirius had to find a better refuge to recover from Azkaban but Sirius refused as he wanted to be the first one there for Harry when the time needed it. Remus remembered the photo in the Prophet of how Sirius laughed that Peter got the better of him when Peter faked his own death. The prankster got pranked in the most cruellest way. The only reason why Peter got away was because Sirius was blinded by grief and that grief was made worse by the dementors in Azkaban. It consumed him. A light bulb only switched on in Sirius' mind when he saw a photo of Peter with the Weasley family ready to strike at Harry when the time was right. Sirius automatically knew what he had to do. Sirius, his brother, may have been lost to them – but at the end of day Sirius was just Sirius- a wizard trying his hardest to do the right thing. Remus knew he should have visited Sirius in Azkaban and heard what he had to say. A visit from a werewolf may have stood against Sirius in Azkaban but if Remus gave Sirius just one chance, he could have searched for Peter himself and handed Peter over to Dumbledore securing Sirius' release. Remus was astonished how Sirius had forgiven him so readily - just wanting a friend in his life.

After the Department of Mysteries Sirius had been cleared of all charges. Remus didn't understand why Sirius had to be dead before Dumbledore finally made steps to prove Sirius' innocence. It was had been simple. Dumbledore had used the memories in his pensive and the Ministry used Veritaserum to interrogate Harry, Hermione and Ron to prove that Sirius has been at the Department of Mysteries to protect them and not as a Death Eater. Remus didn't understand why Dumbledore hadn't ensured Sirius a fair trial in the first place when Dumbledore knew Sirius was working for him during the war and knew of Sirius' belief of fighting the good fight. Dumbledore had gone to great lengths for Snape to protect him from Azkaban after he had turned from Voldemort to be his spy. Why not do the same for Sirius? Remus knew that whilst Sirius respected Dumbledore that he didn't entirely trust him as he felt thatwhilst Dumbledore understood emotion he often put strategy before people. For the first time in Remus' life he was thinking that Sirius may have been right about Dumbledore.

Remus placed his faith in Dumbledore and so had trusted Snape. But Snape betrayed Dumbledore – betrayed all of them. Sirius was right about Snape all along – that his reformed character was a hoax. Even Lily in the end saw how far Snape had gone to the dark side since he had hurt her sister, had friends who were most certainly Death Eaters and had behaved shamefully towards muggle-borns like herself. Remus was no-longer sure that he should unquestionably trust Dumbledore's judgement anymore. Remus had no idea of the mission Dumbledore had left Harry – no Order member knew. He didn't understand why it had to be so secret. Why Harry, Ron and Hermione – his students – could be entrusted with the mission but he, Sirius, Kingsley, Tonks and Moody - experienced powerful wizards – could not. When Sirius had contacted Remus, Tonks, Moody and Kingsley; Sirius seemed very anxious about the plan Dumbledore had for Harry and mentioned that the only reason why it had occurred to him something was wrong was because of his dark upbringing. Remus and Moody of course knew that Sirius had extensive knowledge of the Dark Arts from his parents and so trusted his judgement enough to come to the Order's Headquarters straight away. Remus had even wondered then if Sirius' gut instinct that anyone of the Order was was expendable to Dumbledore if it was for greater good had returned to him. Remus had been to ready to reassure Sirius that this wasn't the case. Whatever the mission was Remus knew he might be of some use to Harry and wanted to protect him on the mission Dumbledore had set for him.

Remus knew that Harry was older than his years and it wasn't just his recent encounters with Voldemort and the loss of Sirius that made him so. The only time Remus had seen Harry as a child was during his third year at Hogwarts when he had taken risks to visit Hogsmead using the invisibility cloak and Maurader's map. Of course he had to tell Harry off with Sirius on the loose but it had cut at him to do so since Remus knew that Harry had been denied the visits of Hogsmead by his own family. Remus remembered how slight Harry looked on the train, how he heard that Harry had lost control of his magic resulting in him blowing up his aunt, and his struggle to think of happy memories to fight off the dementors with a Patronus Charm. Remus had seen Harry's sparsely decorated room at 4 Privet Drive when he first took him to the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix and had seen the finger shaped bruises on his neck knowing that dementors did not leave bruises. Remus was fully aware how unhappy Harry was at the Dursley's and knew that if he wasn't a werewolf he would have been able to take Harry in right from the start of their misfortune – when Voldemort had killed Lily and James. Remus and Sirius often spoke how they would knock on Vernon Dursely's door and teach him a lesson or two on how he should've treated Harry but they never got the opportunity. In the third year, all Remus could do was teach him and not befriend him otherwise he could have been accused of grooming Harry for the dark side as he was a dark creature. This had been Dumbledore's advice so he had followed it but not to the letter as he had given Harry extra classes in order to spend more time with him but also to protect him. It had tickled Remus to see Harry argue with Draco in the same way James had argued with Snape but it had disappointed him that Snape had taken out an old school-boy grudge on Harry - the Marauders were to blame for that by never attempting to make peace with Snape. It had been a hard earned joy to see Harry coming to the realisation that his god father was innocent and then see the relationship grow at Grimmauld Place. Here he was always the bystander never wanting to intrude on god father and son time – which Sirius had cruelly lost. After Sirius' death, Remus didn't want to be seen as replacing Sirius – he was irreplaceable. At the memorial service, Remus had seen the scars the "I must not tell lies" on Harry's hand. Remus guessed what had caused them knowing the background of Sirius's "Toujours Pur" scar and was furious at the pink toad who he reckoned was responsible. However, Remus knew not press Harry because to him it would have been so trivial compared to the loss of his god-father. Remus had now run out of excuses for not being there for Harry.

* * *

It had hurt Remus that Harry didn't want him on his mission. He was shaken by Harry's attitude towards him and was ashamed that Harry didn't see him as the last father figure he had left but a coward. Remus felt that he had failed Harry so many times before that when Harry most needed him Harry had pushed him away. Remus had not kept his promise to Sirius that he would protect their boy.

Remus couldn't deny that he was scared that Tonks was pregnant and may have passed on his disease to an innocent baby. Remus didn't see it as abandoning his wife but freeing her of a curse. She wouldn't be ashamed of him if he had a hero's death whilst protecting his other child. Remus was sure he would die protecting Harry.

When Harry turned Remus away he eventually came to his senses and reunited with Tonks in time to see his son born. Remus had a vision of Sirius kicking his butt for not protecting his baby cousin. For months, Remus tired himself out providing protection charms and concealment charms for his family. Remus named Harry to be Teddy's godfather. Remus wanted to make sure that Harry knew he had a family worth living for. Remus tried to reach out to his lost boy whilst he was on the run "I'd tell him we're all with him in spirit. And I'd tell him to follow his instincts, which are good and nearly always right." Harry was right about him – both in terms of leaving Tonks and following in Sirius' shoes - Remus by offering his skills and experience to his mission was following Sirius' example of wanting to protect him.

* * *

Remus answered Neville's call to arms so that he could be by Harry's side. He told Tonks to remain with Teddy – he couldn't bare it for Teddy to be alone in the world seeing how being alone as a child had destroyed Sirius and Harry. However, his spirited and beautiful but foolish wife had disobeyed him and came to fight alongside him. Remus tried to protect her so kept taking his eye off his opponent and did not see the curse that killed him.


End file.
